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Internet Radio was first developed alongside the deployment of the World Wide Web in the 1990's, yet many people today who take the existence of the Internet for granted and use it every day to search for information, shop on line and access to online services such as Banks, car insurance etc., remain unaware of exactly what it is, or the benefits to be had from it. There must be a reason however as to why manufacturers of traditional radio receivers are falling over themselves to add internet connectivity to all their product ranges. The video below illustrates the features to be found on a typical modern, domestic Digital Radio with that capability:

The first Internet Radio broadcast was a simple talk program in 1993 and this was followed over the years, as the technology improved and the upward push of Internet data speed meant better quality reception, with the growing realization that this was a new medium to be reckoned with. It was seen that Internet Radio gives all the features of traditional radio, together with extra benefits and without some of the traditional drawbacks.

Traditional radio stations have a fixed base for their transmission equipment and staff and reception needs to be in line-of-sight of the source antenna. Even then, reception quality is dependent not only on the power of the broadcast source, but also is inversely proportional to the distance from the antenna. On top of this, weather conditions can induce 'signal fade' or cause other interference issues. Internet radio does not have these problems.

It is not essential to use a domestic digital radio to listen to an Internet Radio station. Most people have some kind of computer already, be it a desktop, laptop, notebook, tablet or smartphone. In fact any gadget that can connect to the Internet and can provide audio output can be used ('PS One' anyone?).

The advance of computer and internet technology has brought with it much reduced costs for anyone who wants to set up an Internet Radio station. Computers are cheap and easily come by. This has resulted in a huge and growing number of such stations becoming publicly available. There are currently estimated to be over 20,000 Internet Radio stations in operation and all are accessible from anywhere in the world over the Internet. The majority are free to listen to and most do not make you listen to commercial breaks or other forms of advertising. This is because they a mostly run by individuals or small groups of individuals who do for the love the subject or just have love for broadcasting. You will find however that the large, established terrestrial broadcasting corporations do also have associated Internet Radio services that do come complete with advertising.

The proliferation of so many independent Internet Radio stations ensures that not only can you find station output to match traditional Local Or National radio stations, but in addition you can find every kind of subject matter imaginable available from somewhere in the world on a 24/7 basis.

If you have already experienced the joys of Internet Radio using a computer, or this brief outline has piqued your interest, you may be thinking of purchasing an appropriate internet radio tuner for your home. If this is the case I suggest you visit www.BestInternetRadiosChoice.com, where you will find reviews and comment on some of the best Internet Radios currently available.